My Kidney Stone and I

I’d like to add an addendum to the Merriam-Webster definition of Patient:

Addendum:
6. Waiting for a kidney stone to pass and accepting that you can’t rush it, force it, or do anything but endure it.

It seems that I simply can not let a year go by without reaching our insurance deductible. My body must think it’s a grand challenge, asking “What random and costly malady can I have this year requiring tests and procedures?” Next year, I challenge it to use insurance for preventative care only. Wouldn’t that be dreamy?

When I arrived home from St. Louis on Saturday, I knew something wasn’t right. I went to the local walk-in clinic, where they diagnosed me with a UTI and mentioned a possibility of a kidney stone. After three days of no change with antibiotics, plus no pain relief with meds, I visited my regular doc. She sent me in for a CT Scan, where they discovered a 7 to 8 mm kidney stone – about the size of the top third of your pinky. Since kidney stones can be as small as a grain of sand – and still incredibly painful – I was hoping the urologist they immediately sent me to might intervene.

The urologist – who was at least 75 and had clearly dealt with numberless kidney stone-inflicted patients during his time – was not in such a rush. His nurse told me at one point, “There are worse things than a kidney stone.” Gee. Thanks. The doctor ruled out meds that might help the stone pass easier, but are not deemed safe for breastfeeding – they only had a 20% chance of helping anyway. He then set me up for a procedure on Monday to intervene if I didn’t pass the stone on my own. He told me that it’s possible to pass a stone this large and his final words to me were, “Well, it has a 50% chance of passing on it’s own.”

Honestly, I don’t know what to wish for at this point. The stone must have shifted, so the pain has diminished, but my back hurts and I feel nauseated. I can’t imagine that I passed it without knowing. Right? Anyway, with passing a stone often compared to giving birth, I am not certain if I want to pass it before Monday on my own or hope that it stays where it is and waits for Monday’s procedure. Either way, I’ll be drinking more water from now on.

Any kidney stone stories out there? I’d love to hear them because we all know misery loves company.